Blog:Whisky and haggis

Diageo is pushing its Talisker Scotch whisky as an accompaniment to food and haggis is top of the menu.

Whether you pour your Talisker onto your haggis, or merely sip it alongside, Diageo is keen to make more of the combination.

Haggis sales in the UK rose by 19% to GBP8.8m (US$14.2m) in 2009, said the Scottish Government on Monday (25 January), the date when Scots celebrate the life of national poet Robert Burns.

As two icons of Scottish culture, whisky and haggis could not be more different. One induces romantic images of glens, lochs and moors, while the other tends to conjure a wrinkled nose and a fear of stomach cramps. Have you guessed which is which?

Despite a rise UK demand for haggis, then, Diageo is sensibly looking to promote Isle of Skye-distilled Talisker as an accompaniment to food in general.